Patentable/Patents/US-10644037
US-10644037

Via-hole connection structure and method of manufacturing the same, and array substrate and method of manufacturing the same

PublishedMay 5, 2020
Assigneenot available in USPTO data we have
Inventorsnot available in USPTO data we have
Technical Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a via-hole connection structure and a method of manufacturing the same and an array substrate and a method of manufacturing the same. In an embodiment, a method of manufacturing a via-hole connection structure, includes the following steps of: forming a first conductive layer on a substrate, and patterning the first conductive layer to form a first conductive pattern on which a first photoresist pattern is provided; forming a first insulation layer covering the first conductive layer and the first photoresist pattern; patterning the first insulation layer to form a first via-hole from which at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern is exposed; removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole; and forming a second conductive pattern, wherein the second conductive pattern is electrically connected to the first conductive pattern through the first via-hole.

Patent Claims
16 claims

Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.

1

1. A method of manufacturing a via-hole connection structure, comprising the following steps of: forming a first conductive layer on a substrate, and patterning the first conductive layer to form a first conductive pattern on which a first photoresist pattern is provided, the first conductive layer being patterned, by adopting the first photoresist pattern as a mask, to form the first conductive pattern; forming a first insulation layer covering the first conductive layer and the first photoresist pattern; patterning the first insulation layer to form a first via-hole from which at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern is exposed; removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole; and forming a second conductive pattern, wherein the second conductive pattern is electrically connected to the first conductive pattern through the first via-hole.

2

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein, the step of patterning the first conductive layer to form a first conductive pattern on which a first photoresist pattern is provided comprising: forming a first photoresist layer over the first conductive layer; exposing and developing, with a mask, the first photoresist layer to form the first photoresist pattern; and etching off a portion of the first conductive layer not being covered by the first photoresist pattern, to form the first conductive pattern being covered by the first photoresist pattern; wherein, the first conductive pattern and the first photoresist pattern have the same profile.

3

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises, after the step of forming the first insulation layer and before the step of removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole, further comprising: forming a third conductive pattern and a second insulation layer on the first insulation layer in sequence; and patterning the second insulation layer, so as to form the first via-hole running through the first insulation layer and the second insulation layer and a second via-hole running through the second insulation layer, wherein, at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern is exposed from the first via-hole, at least a portion of the third conductive pattern is exposed from the second via-hole, and an orthographic projection of the third conductive pattern onto the substrate is not overlapped with an orthographic projection of the first via-hole onto the substrate; and wherein, the step of forming a second conductive pattern further comprises: connecting the second conductive pattern to the first conductive pattern and the third conductive pattern through the first via-hole and the second via-hole, respectively.

4

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein, the step of patterning the first insulation layer comprises: forming a second photoresist layer over the first insulation layer; exposing and developing the second photoresist layer to form a second photoresist pattern; and etching off a portion of the first insulation layer not being covered by the second photoresist pattern, so as to form the first via-hole; wherein, the second photoresist pattern is removed while removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole.

5

5. The method of claim 3 , wherein, the step of patterning the second insulation layer comprises: forming a third photoresist layer over the second insulation layer; exposing and developing the third photoresist layer so as to form a third photoresist pattern; and etching off a portion of the second insulation layer not being covered by the third photoresist pattern, to form the first via-hole and the second via-hole; wherein, the third photoresist pattern is removed while removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole.

6

6. A method of manufacturing an array substrate, wherein, the array substrate comprises a display region and a peripheral region around the display region, and a via-hole connection structure is within a fan-out area in the peripheral region of the array substrate; and the method comprises: manufacturing the via-hole connection structure by using the method of claim 1 .

7

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein, the first conductive pattern at least comprises a first fan-out line made of the same material as and formed by the same patterning process simultaneously as a gate line in the display region and a gate electrode of a thin film transistor in the display region.

8

8. The method of claim 6 , wherein, the second conductive pattern at least comprises a second fan-out line made of the same material as and formed by the same patterning process simultaneously as a pixel electrode or a common electrode in the display region.

9

9. A method of manufacturing an array substrate, wherein, the array substrate comprises a display region and a peripheral region around the display region, and a via-hole connection structure is within a fan-out area in the peripheral region of the array substrate; and the method comprises: manufacturing the via-hole connection structure by using the method of claim 3 .

10

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein, the third conductive pattern is made of the same material as and is formed by the same patterning process simultaneously as a source electrode and a drain electrode of a thin film transistor in the display region.

11

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein, the second conductive pattern is made of the same material as and is formed by the same patterning process simultaneously as a pixel electrode or a common electrode in the display region; a third via-hole is formed while forming the first via-hole and the second via-hole, the third via-hole runs through the second insulation layer and exposes at least a portion of the source electrode or the drain electrode, and the pixel electrode is electrically connected to the at least a portion of the source electrode or the drain electrode through the third via-hole.

12

12. A method of manufacturing a via-hole connection structure, comprising the following steps of: forming a first conductive layer on a substrate, and patterning the first conductive layer to form a first conductive pattern on which a half-tone photoresist pattern is provided, the first conductive layer being patterned, by adopting the half-tone photoresist pattern as a mask, to form the first conductive pattern; ashing the half-tone photoresist pattern, so as to form a first photoresist pattern covering at least a portion of the first conductive pattern; forming a first insulation layer covering the first conductive layer and the first photoresist pattern; patterning the first insulation layer to form a first via-hole from which at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern is exposed; removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole; and forming a second conductive pattern, wherein the second conductive pattern is electrically connected to the first conductive pattern through the first via-hole.

13

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein, the step of patterning the first conductive layer to form a first conductive pattern on which a first photoresist pattern is provided comprising: forming a first photoresist layer over the first conductive layer; exposing and developing, with a half-tone mask, the first photoresist layer to form a half-tone photoresist pattern; and etching off a portion of the first conductive layer not being covered by the half-tone photoresist pattern, to form the first conductive pattern being covered by the half-tone photoresist pattern; wherein, the first conductive pattern and the first photoresist pattern have different profiles, and a half-tone area of the half-tone mask at least corresponds to a portion of the first conductive pattern not being covered by the first photoresist pattern.

14

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the method further comprises, after the step of forming the first insulation layer and before the step of removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole, further comprising: forming a third conductive pattern and a second insulation layer on the first insulation layer in sequence; and patterning the second insulation layer, so as to form the first via-hole running through the first insulation layer and the second insulation layer and a second via-hole running through the second insulation layer, wherein, at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern is exposed from the first via-hole, at least a portion of the third conductive pattern is exposed from the second via-hole, and an orthographic projection of the third conductive pattern onto the substrate is not overlapped with an orthographic projection of the first via-hole onto the substrate; and wherein, the step of forming a second conductive pattern further comprises: connecting the second conductive pattern to the first conductive pattern and the third conductive pattern through the first via-hole and the second via-hole, respectively.

15

15. The method of claim 12 , wherein, the step of patterning the first insulation layer comprises: forming a second photoresist layer over the first insulation layer; exposing and developing the second photoresist layer to form a second photoresist pattern; and etching off a portion of the first insulation layer not being covered by the second photoresist pattern, so as to form the first via-hole; wherein, the second photoresist pattern is removed while removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole.

16

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein, the step of patterning the second insulation layer comprises: forming a third photoresist layer over the second insulation layer; exposing and developing the third photoresist layer so as to form a third photoresist pattern; and etching off a portion of the second insulation layer not being covered by the third photoresist pattern, to form the first via-hole and the second via-hole; wherein, the third photoresist pattern is removed while removing the at least a portion of the first photoresist pattern exposed from the first via-hole.

Classification Codes (CPC)

Cooperative Patent Classification codes for this invention. Click any code to explore related patents in that topic.

Patent Metadata

Filing Date

March 26, 2018

Publication Date

May 5, 2020

Want to explore more patents?

Browse 5M+ US patents with plain-English claim translations and AI-generated analysis.

Citation & reuse

Analysis on this page is generated by Patentable — an AI-powered patent intelligence platform. AI-generated summaries, explanations, and analysis may be reused with attribution and a visible link back to the canonical URL below. Patent abstracts and claims are USPTO public domain.

Cite as: Patentable. “Via-hole connection structure and method of manufacturing the same, and array substrate and method of manufacturing the same” (US-10644037). https://patentable.app/patents/US-10644037

© 2026 Patentable. All rights reserved.

Patentable is a research and drafting-assistant tool, not a law firm, and does not provide legal advice. Documents we generate are drafts for review by a licensed patent attorney.